The Enemy Thwarted

-December 5, 2021-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day,

“Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wisemen.”

(Matthew 2:16).

The events referred to in our text today are among the darkest days in Israel’s history. It is commonly known as, “The Massacre of the Innocents.” It is a very apt description of what happened. Killing grown men in the field of battle is one thing, but to kill innocent babies and toddlers is quite another. Herod was king at this time. Herod is a title rather than a name. He, like the Jewish leaders especially, should have welcomed the Christ, but due his jealousy and anger wanted to kill Him.

The one who was behind this devious, dastardly, and deadly attack was the devil. The devil, who was once Lucifer the most beautiful and honored angel, before falling into sin and taking with him one third of the angels, who became demons. God banished him and those who sided with him, and kicked them out of heaven. So starting in the Garden of Eden, he has been down evil in the world. The devil knows the Scriptures extremely well and uses it to his advantage. He has been trying to wipe out the line of Christ and destroy God’s plan ever since. He did not want Christ to be born nor to die on the cross for our sins. He used every trick in his evil, wicked playbook all to no avail. The word thwart is defined as, “prevent someone from accomplishing something; oppose a plan, attempt, or ambition successfully.” The devil the thwarter became the thwarted.

Pharaoh was the first vessel of the devil to kill the Israelite baby boys. He knew he could weaken the Hebrews living in Egypt by this wicked, murderous strategy. All male babies were to be killed, while the female ones would be allowed to live. God thwarted his plan, Moses and others were spared, and God’s plan of deliverance from the bondage of Egypt was successful. Two Hebrew midwives, Shiprah and Puah, refused to carry out Pharaoh’s plan to kill the baby boys and God protected them and their families.

The next evil man who tried to wipe out the whole Jewish race was Haman, another pawn of the devil. He was so angry at Mordecai for not bowing down to him that he concocted a plan to not only destroy Mordecai but all the Jews, men, women, and children. Once again, Haman, and the devil were thwarted. We also know in more modern times that Adolf Hitler sought to destroy the Jews and killed over 7 million during his evil reign over Germany. He too was defeated.

Now enters Herod, out for blood, to kill the Christ child. When the wisemen came to him looking for Christ the new born king, he pointed them to Bethlehem and told the wisemen, “Go and search carefully for the Young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also” (Matthew 2:8). He never intended to worship Him but rather to kill Him. God protected His Son by having Joseph and Mary move temporarily to Egypt. Herod was frustrated when God warned the wisemen not to return to Herod but to go directly home by another route. Again the devil was thwarted.

Sadly, so many Jewish male toddlers from two years old and under living around or in Bethlehem were murdered. Herod was a mass murderer of the worse kind. There were much anguish and so many tears at that time. Jeremiah’s prophecy in Jeremiah 31:5 was fulfilled in Matthew 2:18, “A voice was heard in Ramag, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they were no more.” One day the devil will defeated fully and thrown into the lake of fire. Until then he fights on, despite being defeated by Christ on the cross.

Let us rejoice in God’s plan of salvation, and how Jesus was victorious over sin, death, and Satan. Satan wanted to kill Jesus so badly that it turned out to be his downfall just as it was with Haman who was executed on his own gallows that he had built to kill Mordecai on. We are on Christ’s side, the winning side. Praise be to God!

Have a blessed and victorious day. The devil is no match for the Lord. He protects us and helps us. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean